Hobbyhorse



D. e. REMPEL HOBBYHORSE 2 BBtS-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 27, 1957 ,NVENTOR ieh'ich G. Rampe! -TTORNEYs United States Patent HOBBYHORSE Dietrich G. Rempel, Akron, Ohio,

assignor to Rempel gfinufacturing, Inc., Akron,

Ohio, a corporation of Application February 27, B57, Serial No. 642,861 2 Claims. (Cl. 272-52) This invention relates to improvements in hollow toys inade of plastic materials and supporting structures there- The invention relates more particularly to hollow plastic toys such as a pony, etc., having therein a framework, including a saddle and neck-piece rigidly secured together and with handle members secured to the neck-piece, and with one or more downwardly extending supporting members for the saddle and neck-piece, together with a supporting frame secured thereto and having footrests therefor and with a spring-supported frame secured to the depending member or members and located below the level of the pony for supporting the same.

The toy is advantageously a rubber or other plastic toy made from flexible rubber latex, or other plastics by a compound rotation process such as described in my prior Patents Nos. 2,469,892, 2,603,836 and 2,629,130, in which the latex is inserted in the proper amount in a mold of water absorbing material such as plaster of Paris, and with compound rotation of the mold around two axes arranged e.g. at right angles to each other, whereby the water is absorbed from the latex by the absorbent material of the mold and the toy is formed in the mold of rubber deposited from the latex of approximately uniform thickness, followed by further drying of the rubber layer thus formed and curing of the rubber to form a toy of cured rubber of e.g. around A; inch in thickness.

The toy can also be made of other plastic material such as plasticized polyvinyl chloride by a compound rotation process in metal molds, as described, for example, in US. Patent No. 2,624,072.

The toy is molded with a saddle portion adapted to receive the supporting saddle member for supporting the .toy and a child seated thereon. A neck-piece member is also provided, which is secured to the saddle member and support and to which hand-hold members are secured, to be engaged by the child seated on the pony. The toy is provided with one or more downwardly extending supporting members extending below the toy and supporting the internal frame, i.e., the saddle and neck member.

The toy can be formed by compound rotation in the molds and the saddle and neck-piece subsequently inserted through an opening made in the bottom of the molded toy. The saddle, or the saddle and neck-piece, can also be located within the mold and away from the walls of the mold when the toy is being formed by compound rotation.

Whether the saddle, or saddle and neck member, are located within the toy while it is made by the compound rotation casting method, or whether these frame members are inserted through an opening in the bottom of the toy after it has been formed by the compound rotation casting process, they are supported by one or more downwardly extending support members such as one or more rods or tubes extending downwardly from the completed toy for supporting the same. And the downwardly extending supporting member or members are secured to a frame structure which is located below the pony or other toy and which has, as a part thereof, foot rests for the rider of the pony, located at a lower level than the body of the pony, so that a rider on the pony with hands engaging the hand bars connected to the neck member and with feet mounted on the foot supporting member has these members rigidly secured to each other and to the saddle support so that these are held in the same relative position. And the toy, such as the pony, is otherwise unsupported and is yieldable to pressure by the knees of the rider or by pressing with the hand of the rider. And the neck of the pony or other toy is flexible and, with a bridle on the head of the pony, the neck can be moved by pulling the reins and will return to normal position on release of the reins.

The supporting frame for the pony or other toy is advantageously a knock-down frame with upper frame members secured to the depending support of the pony and having foot rests on a portion of the frame. The frame is also one which is advantageously telescoped together to form a stationary lower supporting frame to which the upper frame members, secured to the pony, are supported by four springs.

The lower supportingframe is advantageously made up of piping having upwardly extending portions, to the tops of which the springs are secured, and lower portions welded together and telescoping into a sleeve member. The end members and the sleeve member can be shipped separately in the same carton as the pony and readily telescoped together to form the lower supporting frame to which the springs secured to the upper supporting portion of the frame are secured.

This method of supporting the pony or other toy is such that a child mounted on the saddle of the pony and with hands secured to the hand bars on the neck of the pony and with feet on the upper frame member can ride the pony and cause movement of the pony by a bucking or other action on the stationary lower frame through the action of the supporting springs.

The toy is advantageously in the form of a pony with a saddle portion supported by the saddle frame member and hand bars secured to the neck frame member. And the foot rests or supports on the upper frame member are so located as to approximate the location of the feet in a stirrup.

' In making the hollow rubber toys with the use of flexible rubber latex, the molds are advantageously made of two side members for the sides of the pony, together with an intermediate or lower member for the lower portion of the pony located between the legs. The method of molding the pony is by inserting the proper'amount of latex in the molds, made of absorbent material such as plaster of Paris, and with compound rotation of the molds around two axes at right angles to each other, such as described in said prior patents, and with subsequent further drying of the molded toys before removing them from the molds, with further drying and curing after removal from the molds.

In the molding method, the saddle frame support, or both the saddle and the neck-piece, are located in the mold away from the sides of the mold and held in positron during the compound rotation casting of the toy. In this case, the lower supporting member or members extend downwardly through one or more-tubular inserts in the intermediate section of the mold- -By omitting the saddle and neck support, the .toy :can be cast by the compound rotation process without having the saddle and neck support located therein. And these can be subsequently inserted by cutting a slot in the belly portion 7 of the pony, inserting these elements, and then closing the opening.

-While the invention is of special value in the provision of a life-like pony with spring supporting frame, .it is applicable to other toys which have a :saddle portion or seat to support the rider and a neck portion to which the handle bars can be inserted and which can similarly be supported by one ormore downwardly depending supporting members located above'and secured tion process in suitable molds, and where the saddle and neck frame members are subsequently inserted through an opening made in the bottom of the toy, or are located within the toy during the casting operation.

The frame member which supports the toy through its downwardly extending support member or members has upper frame members secured to the downwardly extending member or members, four springs supporting these up er frame members, and a lower telescoping stationary frame with tubular members which are telescoped together to enable them to be shipped in a knocked down state and readily assembled to form the lower frame.

The lower frame member is advantageously made of two end members having upwardly extending corner members and inwardly extending horizontal members welded together and secured together .by a long telescoping member so that the lower frame can readily be assembled. V

- The invention will be further described in connection with the accompanying drawings illustrating certain embodiments thereof, but it will be understood that the invention is not limited thereto. 7

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 shows one form of upper and lower frame members, and supporting saddle and neck-piece, separate and apart from the pony or other toy supported thereby; and

Fig. 2 shows the same upper and lower frame members as those of Fig. l supporting a hollow rubber pony.

' action When the frame is to be assembled.

Fig. 1, which shows the upper and lower frame members, and the saddle support and neck-piece, without the pony or other toy, includes the upright tubular member 1 with a saddle member 2 secured thereto and which has an upper portion extending at an angle and having aflattened end 3 with a hole therein to which the handle members 4 are secured.

The lower portion 5 of the vertical support 1 is bolted by bolts 8 to the upwardly extending portions 6 and 7 of two horizontal tubular members 9.and IQWelded at their ends to transverse frame members 11' and-12, respectively. Foot-rests 13 are provided on thetransverse frame member 12.

The portion of the frame thus described is the upper frame member with the saddle, handle bars and foot supports on a rigid upper frame work such that a child sitting on a saddle and grasping the handlebars and with its feet on the foot supports will be in the natural position of a child riding a pony. And the saddle on which the child sits as well as the handle bars and foot rests are held in rigid relation to each other. 7

The upper framework thus described is supported by 'which conforms to the saddle support.

4 four springs 14, 15, 16 .and 17 which are joined to the ends of the cross bars 11 and 12 through metal rings 18 extending through the transverse tubes and to which the ends of the springs are attached.

The four springs are united at their outer ends to four posts forming part of the lower framework and this lower framework may be of different construction to provide four corner posts to which the springs are attached. These corner posts are the upright members 19, 20, .21, .22, which have metal rings 23 at their upper ends, to which the outer ends of thesprings are attached.

The lower framework which secures the four corner posts together to form a rigid frame may vary in construction and arrangement and may include side bars and cross bars or end bars and intermediate connecting members, and is advantageously made of telescoping tubing such that the lower frame can readily be detached for shipment and readily be put together with a telescopin The lower frame illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 has two end members at the ends of the frame welded together to form a rigid end member. In the construction shown, one end member is made of the-uprights 19 and 20With their inwardly extending members 24 and 25 welded together at 26 to form an integral end unit. The other end unit is made up of the uprights 21 and 2 2]and their inwardly extending members 27 and 28 welded-together at 29 to form a rigid end member. These end frame members telescope into along tube into whichthey can readily be inserted and from which they can readily be removed. The tubes where they are welded together are flattened so that the two flattened and welded tubes readily telescope into the long intermediate tube 30..

Fig. 2 shows the frame of Fig. 1 installed in a hollow pony made by the rotary casting process in which the toy is formed by introducing vulcanizable rubber latex into a mold of water-absorbent material, such as plaster of Paris, and the toy formed by compound rotation of the mold around two axes at right angles to eachother until the water has been absorbed from the latex and a substantially uniform layer of rubber has been deposited on all portions of the mold. After further drying inthemold, the molded toy is removed from the mold and further dried and finally cured or vulcanized to'form the pony or other toy.

As illustrated in Fig. 2, the pony 31 has portions cut away at 32 to show the thickness 33 of the molded wall. And it will be noted that the pony is molded with :a saddle recess 34 for receiving the back portion :of the saddle 2 and that the shape of the-pony at the portion where it comes into contact with the saddle is a shape 7 The neckpiece also extends upthrough the neck of the pony and the hand bars are secured to the upper end of the neck-piece in a location convenient for the hands of the child seated in the saddle of the pony. The entire support for the pony is the rod 1 to which the saddle and hand bars are secured and the pony is otherwise unsupported and is resilient and yieldable.

The upper frame includes not only :the support 1 and the saddle and hand pieces connected thereto but :also the upper frame members which connect this upright member with the inner ends of the .springs.- The arrangement is such that the pony is supported above the springs and above the lower portion of the upperframe work, and the foot-rests on the horizontal member 12 have a location similar to that of the stirrups of a saddle."

The arrangement is such that a child seated on the saddle of the pony illustrated in Fig. 2 and grasping the hand bars and having his feet on the fOOteI'CSI S ZlS in a natural position for riding the pony. ,And the yieldable supports of the four springs at the four corners of the upper frame give a life-like motion to-the pony- 'Ihe pony as a whole moves with the upper framework and 'gives the impression of a solid pony on which the child "we ris riding while the unsupported and yieldable nature of the sides and other portions of the pony make it yield to the knees or to pressure when applied thereto. And the pulling of the reins will cause the head to move because of the flexible nature of the molded toy, and the head will return to its normal position when the pull is released.

The lower frame for supporting the upper frame and the pony is located below the pony and below the upper frame. The upper frame can readily be attached to and detached from the lower frame by hooking the ends of the springs into the metal loops or by unhool-zing them therefrom. So far as the rider of the pony is concerned, he is up in the air above the lower portion of the upper frame and also above the lower frame.

The lower frame serves the purpose of supporting the upper frame and toy through the resilient springs and through the four corner posts which are rigidly connected together and which can readily be assembled and disassembled by simple telescoping action of the members.

Instead of making the frame with a single downwardly extending supporting member, two or more members can be used, e.g. m inverted U-shaped member, to which the saddle or saddle and neckpiece are secured and which are attached to and supported by the upper frame.

From the foregoing description, it will be evident that the upper frame which is supported by the four springs and which includes the upwardly extending supporting member 1 and the saddle and neck-piece carried thereby form an integral upper framework for supporting the pony and a rigid upper framework which supports the pony above the springs and above the lower portion of the upper frame.

This upper frame can be used with different kinds of lower supporting frames, and the structure and action are not dependent upon the form and structure of the lower supporting frame.

The lower supporting frame illustrated is a simple and advantageous form of frame with two end members welded together and telescopically connected with a long connecting member by which the end members are readily removed for shipping in the same box which contains the pony. The only portion of the upper frame member permanently connected with the pony is the supporting member 1 together with the saddle and neck-piece which are located inside the pony and which serve to support the child riding the pony and furnish a rigid hand piece rigidly connected to the saddle. The lower portion of the upper frame which connects the vertical member with the four springs is readily disconnected from or connected to the vertical member to permit shipping in a knocked-down condition and assembly when the toy is to be used.

I claim:

1. A supporting frame for a toy having a saddle portion for supporting a child and a neck with hand-hold members secured thereto, said frame being located below the toy and made up of an upper frame which supports the toy and has foot-rests thereon, a lower frame made up of two end members, each end member including a pair of spaced, upright corner members and members extending from the lower ends of said upright corner members and towards the center of the lower frame, the free ends of said latter members being welded together and extending in a direction longitudinally of the lower frame, the cross-sectional dimension of said welded free ends in one direction being greater than their cross-sectional dimension in the direction normal to said first direction, a tubular member telescopically connected with the welded ends of the frame members, the cross-sectional shape of the tubular member generally conforming to the peripheral shape of said welded ends and being not substantially greater than said welded ends, whereby turning of said welded ends in said tubular member is substantially prevented, and springs connecting the upper ends of said upright members with the upper frame.

2. A supporting frame for supporting a toy having a saddle portion and neck portion having hand-hold members, the supporting frame including an upper frame and a lower frame with the toy secured to and supported by the upper frame and which upper frame is located below the toy, springs connecting the upper and lower frames, the lower frame being made up of two end members, each end member including a pair of spaced, upright corner members and members extending from the lower ends of said upright corner members and towards the center of the lower frame, the free ends of said latter members being welded together and extending in a direction longitudinally of the lower frame, the cross-sectional dimension of said welded free ends in one direction being greater than their cross-sectional dimension in the direction normal to said first direction, and a tubular member telescopically connecting the welded lower portions of said end members, the cross-sectional shape of the tubular member generally conforming to the peripheral shape of said welded ends and being not substantially greater than said Welded ends, whereby turning of said welded ends in said tubular member is substantially prevented, said springs being connected to said upwardly-extending corner members.

5 References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,722,418 Small Nov. 1, 1955 2,756,051 Shone July 24, 1956 2,758,632 Keller et a1. Aug. 14, 1956 2,806,698 Thoeming Sept. 17, 1957 

